Strength and Weakness
by Skywolf24
Summary: She always thought she found her hard core resilience by cheating the game of death, but when she looks into his deep blue eyes she knows that he is her shield against the storms she faces. When he looks into her green eyes he knows she will be the light that beckons him out of the void. Post CAWS one shot.


**Strength and Weakness**

**All characters belong to Marvel**

**I own nothing.**

* * *

The dingy haze of amber caressed over her face, ringlets of scarlet lashed over her ivory cheeks as she raced against the bush of the trees, heeled boots sloshing the puddles as she felt desolation grew inside her guarded heart. The mission was completed and recovery was needed but she knew that injuries weren't severe enough to become trapped inside a hospital room for three weeks -she had become immune to pain both physical and emotional-keeping her fragile soul locked underneath the layers of a lethal, unpredictable and remorseful assassin.

She always felt the cold numbness when she was forced to watch the blood drain from her veins, forced to feel a bullet lodge into her shoulder and knives graze over her flawless skin. Behind the semblance of the deadly Black Widow, Natasha had allowed herself to grasp one weakness that wrenched her heart every moment she breathed out his name-Steven Grant Rogers.

The cruel game of life and death always made her became imprisoned in her web she weaved to survive, she had lost many friends along the path she chose and left a blood trail for her demons to chase her down. She spent years trying to erase her past, wiping the blood of her victims clean off her hands and regaining her real existence back even though she crossed a few threads in the shadows of her stolen past.

Now, she was reaching a standstill inside her guarded heart-feeling the harrowing dread creep over her rigid bones. She narrowed her grayish-green eyes on footprints in the soggy earth on the edge of the Potomatic River. She swallowed down a massive lump clogging her throat and followed the faint drops of unmistakably blood in the patches of soggy mud. She felt a dull ache throb in her rib cage as she lifted her head up and intently stared at the black smoke engulfing the sky in the distance.

"No," Natasha drew out a shuddering pant of breath, feeling the blood drain from her face as she sauntered closer to the disturbed area of bushes.

She clenched her jaw refusing to allow her vulnerability to seep from her icy and defiant exterior. She did not want to believe in the truth that suddenly etched over the cracks of her frozen heart. "He's not dead." She heaved a desperate breath, her lungs constricted against the walls of her chest as a fresh layer of tears threatened to prick the depth of her sharpened eyes.

Fiercely, she scoffed away at the emotions betraying her and pressed her full rose shaded lips into a tight grimace as she scanned her sharp eyes over the area and caught a glimpse of a familiar pair of brown leather boots hidden in the blades of the tall grass.

"Steve," she breathlessly called out his name, she scrambled as quickly as she could to his still form. She crashed to her knees, feeling the coldness of the ground seep through her jeans-she doesn't care at the moment, instead she stared at tattered uniform with her intent, firm green orbs welled with tears and bent her head down and framing her hands over his bruised face. Her fingers caressed over the chiseled lines of his high cheek bones and jaw line, wiping the smudges of blood with a gentle brush of her flat palms.

"Don't give the fight yet, Cap." Natasha whispered firmly, allowing her warm breath to dance over his still cut-stone features. She lowered her face down, shadowing his and moved her hands over his drenched chest; she pumped the hard muscle of his pectorals in rhythmical, jerky jabs with her clenched fists against his rib cage.

"You can't die on me, Steve." she snarled, smoldering tears streaked down the sides of her face as she pumped his chest with a stronger ease of her fists, wanting to feel the rise and fall of his chest against her knuckles. "Come on..." She clamped her eyelids tightly shut, allowing her torrent thoughts to trail back to the moments they've shared together with Avengers and solo recon missions over international borders.

"Steve?" she whispered, her voice becoming clusters of sobs, she pulled back slight and raked her glistening eyes over his battered body, blood soaked through the blue material of his uniform and bullets were lodged in his mid-section. She started to tremble as her hands fumbled over the leather straps attached to the broad span of his shoulders. She latched her eyes directly on his face and felt the wrenching grief encroaching around her, writhing her soul into twisted threads and making her heart break into jaded pieces of torn and diminished hope.

"The world needs you, Steve," She managed to snarl out against the tears blurring over her eyes as she held her gaze steady on his face. She slammed her fist hard into his chest, and cried out. "I need you, dammit."

Natasha still couldn't will herself to stop pumping his chest and forcing back the intakes of air into his filled lungs. She needed him more than he could ever know, more than Clint but the lack of movement of his smooth, plush lips lulled her to believe that he was gone-the only good man in her life with a no ledger to wipe clean had fallen into the cold hands of death. Wiping away her tears, she narrowed her face down and brushed his lips with the warmth emanating from her quivering mouth as she said in a gentle, uncharacteristic tone, "I need you to take me dancing."

She closed her eyes, wrapping her tone arms around his broad shoulders, and held him against to her as the soft swells of her ample breasts rubbed heat against his torso. She rocked his body slightly, unleashing tears of anguish and letting them soak into the material of his uniform not sensing a pair of steel-blue eyes watching her pour all emotions from the shadows of the tears. "Steve, come back to me...I need you...You hear me...I need you."

It happened so abruptly. He coughed out a stream of water, gasping for heavy gulps of air and Natalia's eyes widened as she slightly felt her body drift back just enough to stare into his deep cobalt colored eyes dazzling the shafts of afternoon light. He lifted his gloved hand and stroked his fingers through the rich scarlet locks draped over her face.

"Did we win?" Steve asked, wheezing out a strained breath, his eyes sharpening into focus as she nodded. He blinked a few times before meeting her gaze; he curved the edges of his swollen lips into a bright smile. "It's good to see you, Natasha."

"You too, Cap." She replied, lowering her eyes down slightly but he curled his fingers under her chin and pulled her closer, warmth slowly entered his body as he tilted his head and eased his soft lips over hers; she felt her heart beat steadying as her lips moved underneath his heated moisture. The kiss was a simple chaste, but she desired to feel the full explosion inside her mouth. He pressed harder, making the concealed passion become an outpouring need that they craved.

Natasha kissed him back with unrelenting force, and she opened her mouth fully for him to enter. Their swirling tongues swayed into a feverish waltz, her nose dug into his smooth jaw, her breathing was heavy and deep.

The slips and slides of their lips cut through the echoes of distant sirens. His soft lips became watery and scorching, his eyes closed as he gathered and relished the sweet and unyielding taste of her seeping down his throat.

He parted slowly from her mouth, hot breath ghosted over her rosy lips, and then she collided, fully against him, her mouth against his, kissing him with a tender caress before they both broke away. He stroked the strands off of her face, cradling her jaw whole this other arm enclosed around her trim waist. His heart pounded wildly in his chest to the point that he became entrapped in a feverish haze expelling from his body.

His clear and dazed blue eyes met hers, and then he whispered with a husky cluster of words tugging on his tongue.

"I think I finally found who I've been searching for..." he said gathering more air into his lungs.

"And who would that be, Cap?" she asked, shadowing his lips with her own.

"The right partner." he smiled, kissing the top of her head, softly. His voice became a soft and rough whisper ghosting over her skin."It's you, Natasha."

She screwed her eyelids shut, sealing her lips into a tight line, and then she said in a soft response. "I haven't dance in a long time, Steve."

He caressed his fingers along the curve of her jaw. "That's alright...I've never even dance before..." A smirk crossed over her lips as she canopied a light kiss fully on his hot mouth and silenced him as their bodies folded into the other.

As they held onto the each other, Steve and Natasha became shields; protecting their wound hearts and unlocking their guarded souls as they deepened into a long and passionate kiss.

* * *

Hidden in the darkness of the trees behind them, the Winter Soldier stood in stoic, his pensive molten steel-blue eyes shrouded by sloppy tresses of dark hair swathing over his jaw. He pressed the throbbing planes of his back against the rough bark of a tree a cradled his broken arm against the Kevlar of his chest. His chilled lips fastened into a firm, grimacing line of anguish, he drew out a despondent sigh and felt the softness of words ghost over his lips as he trained his gaze on the two Avengers.

"Steve," he whispered out the familiar name in scarce, dismal breath. He felt a dull ache encase over his ribs and looked directly at Steve embracing Natasha in his arms with his ghostly, hollow blue eyes. "I'm sorry." he dejected out, before turning his back and limping into the shadows. He felt the blood pour from his wounds as each drop marked his every pace and left a trail of his existence for Steve to find.


End file.
